The competition is stiff out there and as a job seeker, we are trying our best to keep up with the pace.
But, there is a slight problem in that, even when we know that we need to ace the interview, there are some truths that are kept hidden from the candidate.
The recruiters, on whom we rely so much for the job, they don’t tell us the whole scenario. We have to work hard to dig into the information and it is done for our benefit only.
There is no dearth of talent in the market, but only those people get a job, who knows all these hidden truths.
Putting your best foot forward:
When we are applying for a job, then we all know that we are not the only one to apply for that particular position, instead there would be number of applications lined up for that job.
So, in this cut throat competition, we have to bring out our best during the interview, starting from our look to our personality.
The recruiters try to see through things and they are keen to verify whether the candidate is suitable enough for the job or not.
As a candidate we have to market ourselves well so that if we bag some interviews and aren’t able to crack it, then we have to realize that we might be doing something wrong.
Solving the puzzle:
The interview is a sort of puzzle that is hard to figure out because during the interview everything is under scrutiny.
The moment you step in the company, your verbal communication, non – verbal communication and written skills are under test and these are some parameters that sets one candidate over others.
But, you will not hear these from the recruiters, they won’t give out the hidden idea behind selecting a candidate and they have their own reasons for doing that.
Feedback is very important to solve the puzzle of an interview, but you will hardly find any recruiter who will go all out and share the main reason of selecting or rejecting a candidate.
So, the dilemma in the mind of a candidate continues and they don’t know how to improve themselves to make a great impact on the recruiter the next time.
Things that recruiters never share:
There are several things that turn off the recruiters, but they won’t let you know. Here we will be discussing some pointers that are considered to be the secret weapon of the recruiters, which they keep hidden only.
1. Cover letter
might be the one:
If you have made use of template that is available online to write your cover letter, then you are not alone in the race.
There are hundreds who have made use of the same template; therefore, your cover letter just seems to be the photocopy of several other cover letters that recruiter has already gone through.
So, you can pretty well guess that it can be one of the reasons why the candidates get rejected.
2. Resume not impressive enough:
When you are applying for a vacant position, there are hundreds of applications lined up for that particular job.
The recruiters don’t get enough time to go through each line of your resume, instead they just scan through each resume.
So, overall the recruiters get a maximum of 10 seconds to go through your resume and that is the reason your resume must have all the important information displayed in such a way that the recruiter can have every information at a glance.
The environment is highly professional and the recruiters are well trained to pick up the relevant items. They know what they are looking for, so they sift through the bevy of information to get what they want.
3. Respond quickly:
Your communication skill will be tested by the way you respond to the recruiter’s first contact. It will also let the recruiter know how interested you are about the position.
4. Don’t overdo the follow up:
Sometimes we tend to overdo things and it definitely puts off the recruiters. Following up is good, but if you mail them every day to know how things are proceeding, then it will not go down well with the recruiter.
We have to understand that if there is any information that is important to us, then the recruiter will let us know about that.
5. Shaky handshake:
The first time you enter the room and shake hands with the recruiter will set the mood of the interview.
Therefore, if your hand is sweaty or too soft, then your first impression will definitely get thumbs down from the recruiter.
6. Not well groomed:
Messed up hair or stinky breathe is never welcomed and if you think that it will go unnoticed, then you are wrong because it doesn’t happen that way. The recruiters remember everything you do in that room during the interview.
7. Asking too much about salary:
Yes, we work because at the end of each month we want a fixed amount to enter our bank account, but that doesn’t mean we will keep on asking about salary more than the position that is being offered.
Small negotiations are accepted over salary, but if you stretch it further, then you can surely bid adieu to this job because the recruiter doesn’t like this attitude.
8. Be true to yourself:
Don’t hide something that will pop out of the closet eventually. Some of us think that we can get away with small lies here and there, but what we don’t understand is that the recruiters will verify what we are saying in front of them.
So, if we lie now and they find out the truth later all by themselves, then we will definitely be not considered again and it might also happen that they blacklist us.
Therefore, why take chances? We must come up with honest answers in the interview.
9. Too many buzzwords:
Industry lingo or the buzzwords are good to use during an interview, but that doesn’t mean we will keep on using it every now and then because that would seem that we don’t have anything of our own and we are just quoting the textbook.
We want them to know that we have up to date knowledge about the industry, but for that there is no need to over do things with the buzzword.
Moderate usage is the key and we have to keep in mind when to use them.
10. Communication problem:
Communication problem doesn’t always mean that you are not able to convey the message, instead it can also mean that you are either too slow or soft spoken or too fast.
Either way, it will be problematic for the recruiter to understand what we are trying to say.
Even when we are blurting out the correct answer, the recruiters won’t be able to understand a single word out of it.
11. ‘Ah’ and ‘um’ is not welcomed:
Some of us have the habit of including too much of ‘ah‘ or ‘um‘ in between our sentences. This shows that we are not that prepared or worse, we have a problem with our communication style.
So, before appearing for an interview, it is imperative that we practice well and that too in front of our friends and families. Only then we will be able to avoid these fillers in our sentences.
12. Acting weird:
When we are sitting in an interview room, then you must act seriously. It is not the place where you can make fun and giggle around. Smiling is required, but that doesn’t mean you can act awkward
Make sure to avoid facial tics and another thing is that never sit there expressionless because that way you are giving out the wrong signals to the recruiter.
They will feel that you are not interested in the job.
13. Poor grammar or stammering:
While answering an interview question you need to come out with proper English. There is no way you can get away with poor grammar and stammering.
If you stammer naturally, then it is different, but otherwise, it will definitely cut down your points.
14. Keep eye contact:
If you keep on shifting your eye contact, then it means that you are not confident enough. So, it is better that we maintain the eye contact all through the interview.
15. Overconfidence can be detrimental:
Being confident about ourselves is one thing and being over confident is a completely different thing.
Confident candidate will get through the interview with flying colors, but over confident candidates will not be able to make it, therefore, when we practice for our interview, we make sure that we don’t come across as over confidence. Attitude is the key, if we can keep it correct.
16. Lack of clarity:
We must listen to the question first and then answer the question asked by the recruiter because if we are in a hurry to answer the question, then in most cases we will get it all wrong.
It might happen that when we are answering in haste, we mess up the details.
If it happens that way, then the recruiter will find the lack of clarity in our answer and we will not be able to make it.
17. Interview attire:
When we enter the interview room the first thing that will help us to create an impression on the interviewer is our attire.
Therefore, while selecting the interview attire we must keep in mind that it should be properly ironed, buttons should be in the proper place, belts and other accessories must also be apt for the occasion.
Too tight or too revealing or too flashy would not help the cause at all. It is better to stick to formals with suitable colors.
18. Smell good:
It is important that we smell good, but while doing so, we must also remind ourselves not to enter the room like a room freshener. A mild perfume is alright, but too strong might put off the recruiter.
One more thing is that you must not enter the room smelling like you haven’t taken a bath for years, which is even worse than using strong perfume.
19. Research about the company:
At the end of the interview, when the interviewer asks us whether we have any question for him or not, then we must ask questions, which shows that we have done our research properly.
It must include some information about the organization and also about the position we have applied for.
20. Be passionate about the job:
Recruiters love the candidates who show interest in the particular job. They want to see that the candidates are passionate about this particular job and they are not considering it as just about any other job.
21. Business communication:
If you have received an email from the recruiter, then in reply we must maintain a proper business language.
Even if the recruiter seems to be informal, it is better that we keep it formal and avoid abbreviations.
22. Be on time:
Candidates who are late creates a very bad first impression. Therefore, even if you stay 10 minutes away from the venue, it is better that you leave your house with at least 30 minutes in hand.
It will give you enough time to reach the venue comfortably and then get adjust to the environment as well.
23. Thank you letter:
We all know that it is important that we send in a thank you note once we are done with our interview, but most of us tend to forget.
But, if we can send a thank you note within 2 days of your interview, then also it is alright.
24. Go through your work experience:
If we fumble and stumble on our work experience, then it seems that we are not sure about what work we have done. Therefore, while preparing for the interview, we must go through our resume very well, so that we don’t get stuck answering anything from our resume.
